I totally agree. The Great Mosque of Djenné, uses thick mud walls as a heat sink. They also open vents in the roof to let the hot air out at night and let the cool air in. Other traditional buildings in tropical or hot desert areas typically have large overhangs/balconies to keep the sun off windows, high ceilings, etc, to minimise passive solar heating.
Also, ground-sourceheat pumps would enable the heat in the building to be distributed into the ground surrounding it. For example, about 80% of the residents of Coober Pedy, SA, Australia live underground, a rather extreme variation.
Slashdot Mirror
I totally agree. The Great Mosque of Djenné, uses thick mud walls as a heat sink. They also open vents in the roof to let the hot air out at night and let the cool air in. Other traditional buildings in tropical or hot desert areas typically have large overhangs/balconies to keep the sun off windows, high ceilings, etc, to minimise passive solar heating.
Also, ground-source heat pumps would enable the heat in the building to be distributed into the ground surrounding it. For example, about 80% of the residents of Coober Pedy, SA, Australia live underground, a rather extreme variation.